The Walt Disney Co. Presents 1999 Disney Legends Awards.

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 10, 1999--

The Walt Disney Co. Wednesday presented nine new Disney Legends Awards in a ceremony at its corporate headquarters.

The annual award, established in 1987, honors individuals whose work has made a significant and lasting impact on the Disney legacy.

"It is true that this company was founded by two giants. But, over the years, an incredible number of people have worked here who have loomed large in their own right. These are the Disney Legends, and this ceremony represents a wonderful opportunity to recognize their enormous contribution to the continuity and creativity of The Walt Disney Co.," said Michael D. Eisner, chairman and chief executive officer.

Recipients of the award this year included Tim Allen, Mary Costa, Norm Ferguson (posthumous), William Garity (posthumous), Yale Gracey (posthumous), Al Konetzni, Hamilton Luske (posthumous), Dick Nunis and Charlie Ridgway.

"The Disney Legends Awards presentations are a great privilege and a thrill for me each year, since I get to be a part of the recognition of my own personal friends and heroes. All my life I've seen -- and in many cases worked with -- these people, working both behind the scenes and in front of the cameras. It's their collective vision and creativity that has enchanted millions, young and old, through the generations. If it's true that Disney is a legendary company, it's only because of these legendary people who are all richly deserving of this recognition," said Roy E. Disney, vice chairman.

Allen is best known for his hit TV show, "Home Improvement," which ran for eight years, during which it was perennially in the top 10. Allen won the Golden Globe in 1994 and four People's Choice Awards for his work on the show. Allen achieved great success in live-action film with "Jungle 2 Jungle" and Walt Disney Pictures' biggest-grossing live-action film of all time, "The Santa Clause."

He played the role of the unforgettable Buzz Lightyear in the first all-computer-generated animated film, "Toy Story." He has also published two of Hyperion Books' bestsellers, "Don't Stand Too Close to a Naked Man" and "I'm Not Really Here."

Costa performed the voice of Princess Aurora in the 1959 classic, "Sleeping Beauty," which was Mary's first professional singing job. She was only 22 at the time, but by the time the film was released, she was an acclaimed performer in the opera. Mary spent 18 months working on the film, and artists incorporated her movements and gestures into the character of Aurora.

Ferguson's playful and inventive spirit infused the characters he animated. He came to Disney in 1929 and made a dramatic impact on animation in 1934 with the short, "Playful Pluto." This film included the famous scene in which Pluto tries countless ways to get flypaper off of his paws. This was the first time an animated character appeared to be thinking on screen, which opened up new possibilities for the entire animation medium.

Ferguson was a supervising animator on "Snow White," for which he created the wicked queen, the first of the great Disney villains. He also developed J. Worthington Foulfellow in "Pinocchio" and held key supervisory roles in developing "Fantasia," "Dumbo," "The Three Caballeros," "Cinderella," "Alice in Wonderland" and "Peter Pan."

Garity was the technical pioneer who showed Walt Disney how to incorporate sound in his animated films. "Steamboat Willie" was released as the first sound cartoon following Garity's development of the Cinephone motion picture recording system.

Garity and his team of engineers also created the multiplane camera, which brought a striking sense of depth to "Snow White," "Pinocchio" and "Fantasia." Garity also oversaw the development of the first use of stereophonic sound, called "Fantasound," in "Fantasia."

Gracey joined the company in 1939 as a layout artist on "Pinocchio." This was followed by "Fantasia" and a number of classic shorts. Gracey went on to become a leading Imagineer and helped design and build attractions for Disneyland, including making the stage magically disappear during scene changes in the Carousel of Progress and creating spooky effects in the Haunted Mansion.

Konetzni joined Disney's character merchandising division in 1953. Over the next 28 years, he developed ideas for toys, clothing, stationery, greeting cards, jewelry and watches. Konetzni's creations included the famous and popular lunch box set that featured the Disney characters on board a school bus.

Luske helped revolutionize the entire art of animation. He joined Disney in 1931, working on Mickey Mouse shorts. In 1935, he advanced the art of character animation with his portrayal of the hare in the Oscar-winning short, "The Tortoise and the Hare," and with Jenny Wren in "Who Killed Cock Robin."

Luske was the first animator cast by Walt Disney to work on "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." While working on the film, he developed the ground-breaking technique of live-action reference films, which is a tool that is used by virtually every feature-animated film to this day. Luske was also supervising co-director on "Pinocchio," and sequence director on such landmark films as "Fantasia," "Cinderella," "Peter Pan," "Lady and the Tramp," "101 Dalmatians," and the animated sequences in "Mary Poppins."

Nunis joined the company as a trainer of new Cast Members for The Disney University. Nunis later served as an attractions supervisor where he developed standard operating procedures for all of the park's attractions and as a director of park operations where he helped develop Walt Disney World. He went on to become the president of Walt Disney World and Disneyland where he developed and maintained two of the world's best-known destination resorts for two-and-a-half decades.

Ridgway wrote some of the first news stories about Disneyland and covered the park's opening when he worked for the Los Angeles Daily Mirror from 1954 to 1955. He joined Disneyland's publicity office in 1963, and later moved to Florida to promote Walt Disney World from its 1971 opening until his retirement this year.

Ridgway was instrumental in the success of Disney theme parks thanks to his enthusiasm and deep commitment to his work. Throughout his career, Ridgway oversaw more than 150 large-scale events hosted for media from around the world, including grand openings, major anniversaries and visits by world leaders.

Honorees each received a 2-foot-tall bronze Disney Legends Award sculpture signifying the imagination, creativity and magic that they brought to the company. (The filmstrip, which forms the base, unrolls to represent the beginning of this company, with Steamboat Willie at the helm. The spiral represents the soaring spirit of imagination. The hand represents the down-to-earth gifts of skill, discipline and craftsmanship. The wand represents the magic -- the spark that is ignited whenever imagination and skill combust together to create a new dream.)

The new Disney Legends Awardees also participated in a hand-print ceremony. The prints will be displayed in bronze at Disney Legends Plaza at the company's Burbank headquarters.

Previous Disney Legends honorees include Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, Annette Funicello, Dean Jones, Angela Lansbury, Fred MacMurray, Haley Mills and Kurt Russell.

Footage from the event will be available on Nov. 10 via satellite. -0-

Feed No. 1

Date:             Wednesday, Nov. 10
Time:             18:00 - 18:15 (6:00 - 6:15 p.m.) Eastern
                  15:00 - 15:15 (3:00 - 3:15 p.m.) Pacific
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Re-feed:

Date:             Wednesday, Nov. 10
Time:             19:00 - 19:15 (7:00 - 7:15 p.m.) Eastern
                  16:00 - 16:15 (4:00 - 4:15 p.m.) Pacific
Satellite:        Galaxy 6 (C-band)
Transponder:      11
Audio:            6.2 / 6.8
TOC:              (During Feed Only) 818/840-7000